The Washington Capitals seek their first home win in a Stanley Cup Final when they host the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday at Capital One Arena.
The Capitals leveled the series with a 3-2 victory in Game 2 on Wednesday. Lars Eller had three points and Braden Holtby made a sprawling save for Washington to hold off Vegas. The Capitals scored all three of their goals after losing center Evgeny Kuznetsov with an upper-body injury he sustained on a hit by Golden Knights defenseman Brayden McNabb. Kuznetsov is questionable for Game 3.
Washington is still searching for its first home win in a Cup Final. The Caps went 0-2 against the Detroit Red Wings in the 1998 Cup Final. The Red Wings limited them to one goal in each game at MCI Center as Detroit finished off a four-game sweep. Game 3 on Saturday will be the first road game in a Cup Final for Vegas.
The Knights rallied for a 4-3 regular-season win over the Caps on Feb. 4 at Capital One Arena. Reilly Smith and Alex Tuch scored in the third period and Marc-Andre Fleury made 20 saves for his 390th career victory. The Caps turned to backup goaltender Philipp Grubauer, who stopped 27 shots.
How to watch Saturday’s game:
Stanley Cup playoffs schedule
| Matchup | Series | Time | TV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Game 5: Washington at Vegas | WSH 3-1 | 7 p.m. | NBC |
SB Nation sites to follow on Twitter:
Vegas (@knightsonice) at Washington (@JapersRink)